THEFT FROM COUNCIL

Dominion, Volume 28, Issue 120, 14 February 1935, Page 11

THEFT FROM COUNCIL

Relief Works Clerk Found Guilty JUDGE’S VIEW OF DEFENCE Dominion Special Service. Wanganui, February 13. A verdict of guilty on twenty counts of theft and guilty of the destruction of a book of account with intent to defraud was returned by a jury in the Supreme Court to-day at the termination of the trial of Norman Leslie Tyler; married, a relief works clerk, who was charged in connection with the misappropriation of moneys while employed by the Waitotara County Council. The jury added a rider to the effect that it was of the unanimous opinion that Tyler did not misappropriate the moneys for his own personal gain. . In his address to the jury his Honour, Mr. Justice Blair, said that the defence that accused had taken these moneys with the concurrence of a senior officer of the council was no defence at all. “You can see where that leads to,” said his Honour. “If a bank teller wants to steal cash and goes to the accountant for his permission it is no defence to ask that the teller be let off because the accountant helped him, The effect of that would be as in this case, that accused would appoint himself his own judge, and instead of ' telling his employer he has lost the money he says, T will steal some more of my employer’s money to make good the shortage.’ He decides to cook his books so that he can be as irresponsible as he likes.” His Honour, after stressing the functions of the jury which he described as being much higher than that of the judge in that they had regard to the sanctity of a contract and the commercial well-being of the community, said he could never understand the wisdom of an accused person dragging another man’s name in, and in effect saying “It was true I stole the money, but B. was helping me. If B. is not charged then let me off.” Tyler was remanded for sentence.